What is Radiotherapy

Cancer is a very appalling disease and doctors are always looking new ways to deal with this disease. The people who are suffering from this disease are incessantly increasing. Cancer can be treated in several ways like surgery, drugs, immunotherapy or biological therapy. One other way to treat cancer is by using radiations and this technique is called radiotherapy. In this therapy ionizing radiations are use to kill cancer cells.

Different types of radiotherapies are available. Selection of the best therapy depends upon client’s requirement and opinions of professionals who have experience in oncology and radiation therapy.

In early times, this therapy was used to treat breast cancer. But at that time doctors didn’t have any knowledge and experience of this field so they often have to face with side-effects of radiotherapy. In this radiations are use so its overdose can lead to harmful effects on health. But with continuous research on these radiations this medical treatment is much safer these days.

In radiotherapy radiations can be focused at required position internally as well as externally. If external radiotherapy is used then radiation is aimed at the patient from outside body. X-rays, gamma rays and particle beams are used in external radiotherapy. In internal radiotherapy radiations are present within the body in injected, ingestible or in the form of implant which can be removed later.

External radiotherapy is better than internal because no radioactive substances need to be injected because they can cause a patient mildly radioactive. The body waste produced by the patient can also become radioactive.

The main side effects of radiotherapy are:-

There can be damage to local or surrounding tissues. Blood cells and lymph cells are also attacked by radiations along with cancer cells and it can result into low blood counts, fatigue and lethargy. Nausea and loss of appetite. Radiotherapy can also lead to sterility.

To avoid these side-effects healthy food should be taken. It will help in making our immune system strong.